HS: Sofi Oksanen rinnastaa perussuomalaiset Hitleriin

Comment: One of Finland’s best-known writers, Sofi Oksanen, was quoted as saying in Rome-based La Repubblica that the Perussuomalaiset’s ideology has its root in Hilter’s Germany.

Whenever writers and artists start to criticize a party for promoting their world view, you know something has got the break eventually. Art survives but political parties aren’t as reslient.

Whatever the ideology of the PS is, reaction to it by the media, artists and common people depends on who you are and your background. Racism, xenophobia and exclusion hits a writer like Sofi Oksanen, who has an Estonian mother, harder than PS MP Teuvo Hakkarainen.

Oksanen knows how hard it is to be accepted in Finland even if she is white, speaks Finnish as her mother tongue, and grew up in this country. For those who are not as fortunate and cannot hit back never mind defend themselves publicly, their resentment are their unpublished blockbusters. Each swing by a politician that encourages exclusion is felt like a hammer blow by some.

That is why I consider it wishful thinking for some editors in this country who have never felt exclusion and racism to play down the rise of the PS. Certainly they are not worried about the election because they’re not minorities.

Mark, who visits our blog, pointed out this problem very well in a comment on Wednesday.

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Finland is perceived abroad largely through the eyes of Finns who are educated enough to express themselves coherently in a foreign language and through the eyes of foreigners who know enough about Finland to do likewise. The owners of these eyes are seldom advocates for the PS world view.

Now there are some who would respond to this situation by developing a siege mentality, but I would venture to suggest that a substantial majority really do care how we are perceived internationally.

I think its the problem of these people that are spreading this misinformation rather than the PS.
Who is rensponsible for the image?

You would be correct in I think also saw operator Hakkarainen & company would not give a damn of what some foreigners think.

However they did get some young people in who unlike Soini know their computers and do speak languages, so unless the Hakkarainen faction sits on the money, they now will have funding for a newsmedia they can use to publish in Swedish and English.

It remains to be seen, but as Halla-aho was a net phenomenon rised by his blog (hey Enrique its your turn in 2015 then!) I think they have a grasp of its importance.

The main reason that europian countries have get these wrong impressions what is going on in Finlánd´s politics is the goverment group called finland-svenska folkpartiet ( Finland’ swedish folk party). In University Studies it has been proven to be most right-wing party in Finland. And in The last goverment ( still is) the secretary of Europian affairs was Astrid Thors from that right-wing elite-group. Under 5% in Finland speaks swedish as their mother-langue but their have been in goverment over 30 years at row. So they are totally over-represented in all finnish official systems, even in Finland’s official TV-channels they have nearly 20 % representation.
Simply they have tried to give wrong information ‘cos their situation in Finland is so powerful – and they have been afraid that there’s going to be some cuttings in this respect – and that they shall nevermore be in goverments. So this right-wing (most right)party is most quilty to this misunderstandings of politics in Finland. Sorry for them.

Hi Pertti “V” Virtanen, few will buy what you are selling. That’s like saying everybody is stupid in Europe and the SFP have HUGE power to manipulate people’s negative opinion of Finland. That line was heard a lot in the cold war when Finland’s sticky relationship with Moscow was under scrutiny. There is NO wrong information: PS is anti-EU, anti-immigration and above all anti-Muslim. Ask Teuvo Hakkarainen.